OUR MISSION

The Firebird Project is a grassroots theater production and arts education company dedicated to telling stories that burn. We produce innovative original productions of classic plays and stage new works that examine and deconstruct the popular storytelling canon. We also offer year-round arts education workshops & classes for teen artists, including acting, improv, playwriting, filmmaking, and roleplaying games. Both our production and education wings emphasize lasting diverse and multidisciplinary community, artistic and intellectual curiosity, and a critical approach to the classical canon.

Founded 10 years ago as a teen-run company, Firebird has always maintained a commitment to platforming young and emerging artists, bringing their voices into the conversation and enabling them to discover what they are capable of. Our close-knit resident ensemble of repeat collaborators creates repertory seasons of multiple works on connected themes, and our education wing fosters the next generation of storytelling artists. Our work is focused on the intersection of the old & new, the mythic and the iconoclastic, examining stories made immortal by Homer, Shakespeare, Austen, Ibsen, and Chekhov whilst exploring new forms including improvisational, immersive, interactive, and site-specific storytelling. We want to tell the stories you know in ways you’ve never seen them before.

FIREBIRD YOUTH THEATER

Firebird Youth Theater, the nucleus of The Firebird Project, made its debut in the Spring of 2013 as the first independent youth-led theater company in our community. The company began its journey with a sold-out five-show run of "Down the Chocolate River and Beyond," a production based on Roald Dahl's cherished chocolate fairy tale. The show was warmly received, captivating audiences of all ages and setting a strong foundation for Firebird's mission to embolden young voices and foster a creative community.

Since then, Firebird has taken flight with nine additional off-Broadway productions: "Expresso" (2014), "Alice's Adventures in Wonderland" (2015), "Treasure Island" (2016), "Romeo + Juliet" (2017), "Our Town" (2018), "R.U.R." (2018), "The Tempest" (2018), "Julius Caesar" (2019), and "An Enemy of the People" (2019). In 2020, amidst a global pandemic, we innovated with "Macbeth: Online," demonstrating our commitment to making art and community under any circumstance. As a storytelling company, Firebird thrives on reinvention and adaptation. Whether in our ‘Lord of the Flies’-inspired rugrat Caesar, our analog-horror Macbeth, or our modern-day, multi-generational Romeo + Juliet, we consider ourselves remix artists, in continual conversation with the storytelling canon that came before us.

ARTS EDUCATION WING

Outside of the Youth Theater, Firebird has seen great success with our arts education wing, providing opportunities for young artists to grow and learn through its diverse programming in acting, improv, playwriting, filmmaking, and creative writing. Our annual summer theater intensives have been providing our students with enriching camp activities since 2018. During the COVID-19 pandemic, we adapted by offering online Plane Shift RPG storytelling workshops, fostering connection and creativity in challenging times.

FIREBIRD PLAYERS

Today, we stand at the threshold of an exciting new chapter. With the launch of the Firebird Players, our professional indie production wing, we are set to stage an original adaptation of Karel Capek's "Rossum’s Universal Robots.” The Players company will build a bridge between our signature youth education programs and our participants’ lifelong careers in the arts, while continuing to foster community and expand Firebird’s impact on the New York theatre scene as a whole. We are committed to providing transformative experiences for young creatives, continuing to blend traditional theatre with innovative storytelling techniques, and amplifying young voices in the arts.